It’s time for the annual survey….geez, it seems like yesterday I was writing last year’s!!

I’m ready for 2012, even if it IS supposed to be the apocalypse.  But for different reasons.  Last year I was ready for 2011 because 2010 was such a hard year.  I was ready to start a new year in our new home. 

This time I’m ready for a new year because 2011 was so kickass that I can’t wait to see what 2012 brings!

What did you do in 2011 that you’d never done before?
We bought a house in Houston in March, I started a new job in April, I attended BiSC in May, I ran my first marathon with TNT in June, I co-hosted a rehearsal dinner for my gorgeous sister-in-law, I started triathlon (finishing the season off with a half ironman), enjoyed a Thanksgiving with both my parents and my husband’s here in Houston.

Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
My 2011 resolutions were to pay off my credit cards (CHECK), lose the remaining 7lbs I had left (CHECK), take a big trip and some small ones (CHECK) find a job I enjoy (CHECK), buy a new computer (FAIL), and to not have any babies (TRIPLE CHECK).

What are your new year’s resolutions for 2012?
I’m following Nicole’s guide to goal-setting and outlining a sort of life plan for the next year.  That being said, I do have a couple of big goals….firstly, buy a decent bike (ah, how my priorities have shifted) and finish my first Ironman – Ironman Texas on May 19th (I’ll have to miss BiSC this year…major bummer).  Next, take my sister on a post-college-graduation trip.  She wants to go to Paris….um, OKAY!  I’d also like to travel some with Shane…go to NY to visit his parents, maybe go somewhere we’ve never been together before….we might go to the beach with my parents.  I hate to be vague with resolutions but another of mine is to stop making people  priorities when they obviously don’t make me one – I will not stand for flakiness, I’m far too busy.  On the work front, I’d like to get a couple of different projects going here at the office.  No details, sorry…I work in HR!  But stuff that will show my value to the company.  Oh, and no babies still.

 Did anyone close to you give birth?
YES!  My good friend (and bridesmaid in our wedding) Merritt had baby Mason, the first of my close circle to give birth.  It’s so funny because it feels like yesterday we were zipping around in her red Mustang in high school.  Well, Merr was zipping, I was willing us to not die.  ;o) 

Did anyone close to you die?
No, thank goodness.

What places did you visit?
Besides the random trips to Dallas and Austin, I went to San Diego for the marathon with TNT, and also to DC for The Nation’s Triathlon.  Shane and I took a 2-year-anniversary trip to San Francisco and Napa. 

What would you like to have in 2012 that you lacked in 2011?
Well, as long as we’re being materialistic, I’ll say a nice tri bike and a sweet Mac computer.  I said last year that I also wanted a filter on my mouth – to not be snarky.  Well, I’m retracting that for 2012.  I don’t want a filter.  From now on, if people are being shitty, I’m going to let them know.  That being said, I’ve gotten a lot better at holding my tongue and making smartass remarks when the only result will be hurting someone’s feelings.  I don’t want to hurt people for the sake of honesty or my opinion.  BUT I’m going to be up front with people about my feelings.  I have a lot of friends…I don’t need any fake ones.

What dates from 2010 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
October 24th was our 2-year wedding anniversary, of course.  On June 5th I ran my first marathon.  On June 12th my sis-in-law got married! 

What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Honestly, all the fundraising I was able to do for TNT.  I have raised almost $8,000 so far and it’s one of my life goals to raise $30K.  And it would be a lie to say it’s selfless fundraising – it makes me feel awesome to participate in these events with such awesome people, and raise money for blood cancer research.  TNT means a LOT to me.

What was your biggest failure?
This is a really assholic thing to say, but I feel like 2011 was a major WIN.  It rocked.  I guess I would say my one failure is time management.  I need to spend more time on our house and carve out specific “family time” instead of running around all the time, literally and figuratively.

Did you suffer illness or injury?
Hurt my ankle 3 weeks before the San Diego Marathon.  Oy.  And….major sunburns.  Sunscreen is a top priority from now on.

What was the best thing you bought?
A bike.  I was really nervous about starting triathlon because I was NOT OK on a bike.  I could barely ride at all.  It is definitely still the weakest leg for me, but the good news is I’m not scared.  I also didn’t want to spend a lot of money on something I wasn’t even sure I’d like.  Well, I fell in love with triathlon and there’s no going back now!

Whose behavior merited celebration?
I’ve always thought this is a weird question.  But – probably all of my awesome family and friends who supported my endurance and fundraising efforts…coming out to numerous pub crawls, happy hours, St. Arnold’s nights, date auctions, etc.  You guys…there are no words.  You rock my world.

Where did most of your money go?
Besides the boring stuff, it went to sports and travel and fundraising!

 What did you get really, really, really excited about?
Not as exciting as last year’s MOVE TO TEXAS, but I was excited of course about all the races and spending a big Thanksgiving together AND all my friends getting married, having babies, etc.

What song will always remind you of 2011?
“Ours” by Taylor Swift.

Thanks for a wonderful year….family, friends, TNT, and Houston.

I’m fed up with lazy people.  I have no sympathy.  I’m surrounded by them and it makes me want to scream.  Same ol’ circus, different clowns.  Or the same clowns.  Whatever.

Be productive.  Get off your ass.  Do something.

If you’re sitting around waiting for life to start, you’re going to be waiting an awfully long time. CONTRIBUTE. LEARN. GROW. GO.

Know this:  I don’t feel sorry for you.

Lazy people, I don’t respect you.  How can you expect people to respect you if you so clearly don’t respect yourself?

I don’t like you. You’re a waste of space.  I need that space. I need you to get out of my space so I can make something of my world.

The world doesn’t happen to you.  You create your own world.

Play the cards you’re fucking DEALT.  If they suck, so be it.  Everybody gets a hand that sucks once in awhile. But you have to PLAY.  If you fold…well….then you fold.

I’m gonna keep playing.  And BECAUSE I keep playing, I’m gonna win the whole damn thing.

I don’t know why I was suddenly inspired to create a 30 before 30.  Maybe it was seeing everyone with their goals lined out in front of them (the Myers-Briggs test told me I’m an INTJ so is it part of my personality?).  Maybe it’s because my sister-in-law is having her big 3-0 in 19 days now! Not sure.  Either way.  Here it is, in the order I wrote them down off the top of my head.  In the future if you want to see the list, go to the new tab I’m creating for it!

I found a lot of adorable “30 before 30″ images, but went with this one – I grew up in Dallas.  So…appropriate.

1.  Pay off all debt (credit card AND student loan)
2.  Complete a full Ironman – gulp.
3.  Figure out what I want to do for a living – and start doing it!
4.  Finally replace my ‘03 Dell  – maybe with a MacBook Pro (also, learn Photoshop while I’m at it)?
5.  Raise $30,000 for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (currently at over $6k).
6.  Spend all day writing at a coffee shop.
7.  Shave my head – because as much as I want my long locks back, I AM NOT MY HAIR.
8.  Travel to Greece and Israel with my husband.
9.  Cultivate an interest in fashion (I really really hate picking out clothes and am horrible at it).
10.  Work on a presidential campaign.
11.  Start a community blogging project.
12.  Go one month without alcohol (and can’t be because of pregnancy, that’s cheating).
13.  Get my wedding dress cleaned and sealed (it’s been almost 2 years).
14.  Take my sister on a college graduation trip.
15.  Get a Brazilian wax (never have before and well why not?!  TMI?).
16.  Go skydiving.
17.  Learn to like scotch (obviously cannot be during a pregnancy either).
18.  Move from Texas again, possibly abroad – but always come back!
19.  Write 100 Yelp reviews – not all of them bad.
20.  Go on a retreat by myself.
21.  Inspire my parents – I don’t know how or what I want to inspire them to do, but…
22.  Take time to organize and settle into our house (cultivate an interest in decorating??)
23.  Swear off meat for good – fish too.  Damn you birds, you’re just so delicious I keep coming back.
24.  Take a Great American Road Trip – Grand Canyon, Mt. Rushmore, Niagara Falls, etc.
25.  Open an etsy shop selling something creative.
26.  Take a cooking class.
27.  Learn how to quilt – more specifically, learn from my grandmother.
28.  Learn another foreign language – French?  Italian?  GREEK?
29.  Invent a “signature dish” – my mom always makes rigatoni – I need my own!
30.  Sponsor a child from Save the Children in the Appalachians.

I’m also working on a life list.  Some of the goals are the same because I feel like some are big enough to qualify as LIFE goals.  That one is still a work in progress!

Since our move to Houston, I’ve felt like this has been the start of a completely new chapter of our lives.

We sold our house and moved BACK across the country.  Shane moved to a new position within his company (he’s the most loyal employee EVER – he’s been with his company since after his junior year of college).  We lived in two different apartments and then moved into our new house. The dogs have been happily adjusting to their pocket-sized backyard and shiny wood floors (they slide all over the place when they run around!).

But I was in the same job, working for the team back in Charlotte.  There was a LOT of disconnect after I moved here, not being with the rest of the team.  And I just didn’t feel like I was in the right place at the right time. 

So I’ve been on the hunt for a fabulous new job.  And you guys….

I GOT IT.

I GOT THE FABULOUS NEW JOB.

It seems like a perfect fit, like it’s the one I’ve been waiting for.  I still feel like I’m in a dream, like I’m going to wake up and they’ll be all, “Hahahahha, you thought you got this job?! Sucka!!”

I’m not offering any details as to what it is yet, since I don’t start til April 4^th. But I just know it’s going to be wonderful. 

Now all of this change is hitting me like a brick wall and feels really really real.  It’s funny because I’ve now lost almost all of the weight (20 lbs, yall) I gained in Charlotte.  Best friend J came to visit from Chicago on her spring break last week and she merely said, “Texas is good for you.”  Texas IS good for me.  It’s my home.  I simply know in my heart we’re going to be so happy here in Houston.  We already are.

Gratuitous picture of Shane at Warrior Dash…he doesn’t look so happy here, but I promise he is!  We had a blast with our friends MA and Jay:

An obscure reference to Ani DiFranco’s (love) Not a Pretty Girl.  But I digress already.

Recently, something’s been bothering me.   I guess I’ve heard it often enough before, but lately there seems to be a barrage of “you’re so funny!” coming my way.  Don’t get me wrong.  I love that people think I’m funny.  And I know I’m funny.  You know how I know?  Because I’m funny.  Follow my circular logic - funny people know that they are funny.  It’s not a mistake.

I honestly think my affinity for humor began from a need to feel – I don’t know?  Attractive somehow…like…attractive personality or something.  Despite what my mother would tell you, I was NOT A PRETTY GIRL as a child.  And my friends who knew me in early years will vouch for this.  J, comments?  Smart?  Yes.  Good dancer? Yes.  Pretty?  A-nooooo.  So the personality and (usually self-deprecating) sense of humor kind of blossomed out of necessity.

It’s not people telling me I’m funny that bothers me…it’s something else.  I’ve been thinking lately – am I still using humor as a defense mechanism?  The answer is yes…unfortunately.  Awkward moment?  Quick Christa, say something funny!  But there are occasions I crack jokes at not the best moment – because I’m feeling uncomfortable, most likely.  Things getting too serious?  Better put up those walls and make a smartass remark.

I want my friends and family to think of me as approachable and someone they can come to with serious issues;  I don’t want to merely be their court jester.  I want to be an open person who can have heart-to-hearts and not be snarky, lest the other person interpret this as me blowing off their feelings.   And I’m really putting forth a concerted effort to make this known. 

So yes, I’m “so funny!”  But I’m other things too, I promise.  Just like I know everyone else is complicated and complex, well so am I.  And simply because I like to talk and make jokes doesn’t mean I’m not a good listener (at least, I try to be).  I’m here for you….yes, YOU!!! All of you.  I ALMOST typed a joke about holding hands and singing Kum Ba Ya.  See?  There I go again.  Hard habit to break.

Let’s part with some lyrics from that wonderful Ani DiFranco tune:

Imagine you’re a girl, just trying to finally come clean…knowing full well they’d prefer you were dirty and smiling.

Yesterday was our 6th Valentine’s Day together.  And YES I just counted that twice on my fingers.  What the heck.  Although I’m not sure the first one really counts, since Shane forgot it – twice.   Yes, he forgot Valentine’s Day, scheduled a makeup one, and forgot that too.  Maybe that’s why even now I don’t really care about it.

We’re not really the kind of people who go over the top for anything, but especially silly pseudo-holidays.  Still, it’s always fun to come home to a long-stemmed red rose, go to the gym for a good run, and return to a dinner cooked by your husband (salad, chicken tetrazzini, and asparagus – YUM).  And then gorge yourself on chocolate-covered strawberries from Amy’s Ice Creams.

Even if you think it’s stupid (like me), there’s still something nice about a day out of the ordinary that’s decorated with red and pink hearts.

Here’s Valentine’s Day 2006, in Austin.  Holy spiked hair, Batman.  I was 20 and Shane was 22 in this picture.  We look like crazy kids!

Photo of us at friends Adam and Crystal’s wedding on New Year’s Day.  Appropriate for the 2nd annual new year survey!!

What did you do in 2010 that you’d never done before?
Lots of stuff!  Contract work, a cruise with my husband, enjoyed the adventure of living with two crazy dogs, moved back to Texas…the list goes on.

Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
My 2010 resolutions were to pay off all debt, lose 15 lbs, travel more, and find a job I love.  Hrmmm…. Well I did pay off a lot of debt, lost 13 lbs, traveled a lot.  Got some more work to do this year.

What are your new year’s resolutions for 2011?
To not be so vague with my resolutions.  I’d like to pay off a lot more debt – all credit cards, a lot of student loan, etc.  That’d be great.  I’d like to lose the 7 lbs I have remaining to make it 20!  Take a big trip and some small ones with my husband and one with best friend J following her law graduation.  Definitely want to find a job I enjoy (and if they want to double my salary, I won’t say no!).  And pay cold hard cash for a fancy pants new computer.  Oh, and no babies!  Haha.  I know I’m being vague again but I have another post coming with details.

Did anyone close to you give birth?
No, but I won’t be able to say this at the end of 2011 – I have so many friends who are blissfully expecting!

Did anyone close to you die?
No, thank goodness.

What places did you visit?
Let’s see.  DC for a birthday party, Hilton Head Island for a bachelorette party, Houston, Dallas, and Austin for weddings, Boone (NC) for a ski trip, went on a cruise to many places (St. Maarten, St. Thomas, Barbados, St. Lucia, Martinique, Bahamas), Chicago to see best friend J, and a couple of visits to NYC.  Wow!  Pretty decent travel year.

What would you like to have in 2011 that you lacked in 2010?
Haha, hmm.  A HOUSE in Texas – we close Feb 28^th, yay!  A computer that works (and has a screen that can stand up on its own) – my poor 8-year-old Dell is about to kick it.  Also, on a kinda different note, I worked really really hard to keep my mouth shut and not offer snarky running commentary.  I’d like even more of that in 2011 – this chick lacks a filter.

What dates from 2010 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
A few of ‘em.  April 19th marked my quarter-of-a-century birthday.  On October 24^th Shane and I celebrated our 1^st wedding anniversary.  On November 20^th we completed the move to Houston!

What was your biggest achievement of the year?
It felt great to be the bigger person in a couple of situations, even though that always sucks.  But what can I say?  I was raised with some class.  I’m also glad that I’ve started to enable myself to just be HAPPY instead of constantly striving for the next step and always thinking it’s not enough or never enough.  Who I am right now is just fine; it’s ok to stand still sometimes.

What was your biggest failure?
Settling on a job I knew I didn’t really want.  But…it’s a paycheck, and I won’t say no to one of those.  And I’ve definitely had worse jobs.  AND it’s in my control and I can change it.

Did you suffer illness or injury?
Caught the flu (presumably in some slummy subway in NY) in December – yuck.

What was the best thing you bought?
CHARLIE!  The $100 adoption fee was well worth it to get that little guy from Animal Control (saving him from certain death, obviously).

Whose behavior merited celebration?
This is a tough one.  We are so grateful for the wonderful friendships we made in Charlotte, and the people who have been so welcoming in Houston.  So I’d have to say – our awesome family and friends!

Where did most of your money go?
Paying off bills, groceries, trips.

What did you get really, really, really excited about?
THE MOVE TO TEXAS!  Definitely.

What song will always remind you of 2010?
Another toughie.  I’d say it’s a toss-up.  “Long Live” by Taylor Swift and “Firework” by Katy Perry.  Love em both.  And yes, I’m cheesy and girly.

Today is Shane’s 27^th birthday.  Gratuitous birthday picture of him – at my grandmother’s house – from two years ago.  This is what pops up on my phone every time he calls – pretty easy on the eyes, I’d say.

And to think I met the kid when he was 20!  I was 19 – just in case you didn’t know, I’m about a year and a half younger.  Ok ok, a year and 4 months.  Whatevs.

So the first birthday we celebrated during our flirtation was his 21^st.  Not wanting to seem too gushy or anything, I thought a flask was an appropriate gift.  I mean, we needed them at those Texas football games, right?  Oh, except now you need a plastic one because of the metal detectors.  Aces.

I went to the VERY classy store Things Remembered at Barton Creek Mall, selected a manly lookin’ flask, and had his initials (SLG) engraved on it. 

Awesome gift, I know.

Except that summer he had an internship (his first time working for the company he STILL works for today!) in Beaumont.  He had to sublet his apartment, and one of his frat bros moved in.

He had only taken necessities, but c’mon, I think the first awesome gift your girlfriend gets you is a necessity.  Granted, Shane isn’t exactly the “lemme slug some Jack outta my flask right quick” kinda guy.  Anyhow, he returned after the summer to find it missing.

Who steals a flask with someone else’s initials on it?  Welp, someone who doesn’t care what’s on the flask as long as it contains some alcohol…that’s who.  It had to be someone living in the apartment that summer.  GIVE IT BACK.  IT WAS AWESOME, and the first gift I ever gave Shane.

However….it won’t be the last.  I have some fun shtuff planned for tonight (and we don’t have to work tomorrow!) and a fun gifty planned as well.  It’s no flask, but I think he’ll still be pleased.

Yall, this guy’s the best.  I can’t believe we’ve known each other over 6 years now.  Well…I can and I can’t.  I never thought life could be so fun or funny.  We’ve made some great adventures for ourselves and that’s what we’re gonna keep on doing.   Cheesefest, I know. 

But let’s face it.  We’re still young.  YOU’RE STILL YOUNG, SHANEY!

Givin’ me crazy eyes while holding both dogs….crazy…

Some photos taken during my sleeeeepy fluish state.  Oh, yes, did I mention?  I had to go to a real doc since Urgent Care didn’t take care o’ bidness.  And I had the flu…aces.  It totally wiped me out for almost a week and a half, ugh.  But now I’m 90-95% better, thank goodness.  And here are some pics of the new temporary place, JUST to give yall an idea of what we’re workin’ with.

Some boxes in the living room, scattered around the rental furniture – a few of these have been consolidated, thanks to Handy Husband.

Mac wouldn’t stop barking, so we stuck ‘im in the Charlie Crate.  Charlie was not amused.

Suitcases, closet, and the new cheap itchy comforter from Target.

Boxes, Charlie Bed, bed…ALL of the rental furniture you see totals to $160/month – what a steal!

Crazy small kitchen, new IKEA kitchenware being washed – hooray!

I don’t think Charlie really likes the temporary sleeping arrangements.

This will be our home for the next 60ish days.  And it’s only so short because…that’s right…WE BOUGHT A HOUSE!

That’s right.  The deal is almost completely sealed on Haus Ginsburg – Houston Edition.

We close February 28th.  All I can say is that it’s a 2-story, new construction in The Heights -  for you non-Houstonians (which is most of you), that’s an area close to downtown (work) and kind of a young professional area.  My friend Taylor says it’s where yuppies live – I would never describe us as yuppies.  Hippies?  Maybe.  Yuppies?  No.  Let’s try to disregard my Junior League membership for the moment!! ;o)

We are uber-stoked and can’t wait to have our home base all to ourselves.

New Restaurant Review and celeb gossip coming soon!  Woo to the hoo.

Why didn’t I publish this one – here ya go.  Should have come after the Haus Ginsburg post.  hmph.

The last post sounded really eager – “hallelujah”?  It’s not that I am super anxious to get rid of our first house.  It’s been good to us and let’s face it, it’s awesome.  But I’m ready for the next chapter.  Something funny I noticed – I started the “old blog” right before we moved to Charlotte – and this blog was only recently picked up – right before we move to Houston.

It’s like new chapter, new blog.

For our one year “paper” anniversary, Shane had one of my old blogs printed and bound – the one which chronicles much of our dating in college.  Right up until graduation.  I wanted to post this final paragraph from my final post in that blog:

“It feels like everything I’ve known in my college career is about to go down the drain and I have to come up with a new definition for myself.  Because I haven’t really figured out who I am and and who I want to be…I know College Christa so well, and I don’t know who Adult Christa is going to be.  And I don’t know how to make decisions, because I always worry if it will be the wrong decision.  And for some things, there’s no going back.  It’s a make-or-break thing.  So what to do?”

There are still things I like about myself and still things I don’t.  Some of those things I can change and some of them I can’t.  In the words of Taylor Swift (yall know I worship her), today is never too late to be brand new.

Ok – so I majorly digressed from the house sale….but all of this is encompassed by this huge change we’re about to undertake.  I just hope everything goes smoothly.

Moving is fun, and starting new chapters is fun, and it’s all one big adventure for the G-burgs – but saying goodbye to people you love is really hard.